1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to the issuance of official documents with secure information incorporated thereinto, and has particular application to writing traffic tickets and the like at non-office locations by mobile official authorities, such as police.
2. Background
There may be other applications for this invention however, our first application is to solve a problem we see in law enforcement. One of the ways in which traffic tickets are validated, for example, is the use of a signature by the respondent or suspect on the ticket. The officer will typically retain a copy of the ticket which has an impression of the signature thereon and a copy will be given to the recipient both of which can be considered official documents. There are many instances in which this may not be appropriate and this invention speaks to those. The invention may have wider applicability to official documents issued by various authorities or even commercial entities whereby the documents become self-proving by virtue of the incorporation of biometric information into them.
Modern police patrol cars are presently outfitted with a great deal of high technology equipment. By providing minimal additional equipment, the requirement for paper records can also be eliminated. An example of the kind of electronic equipment included in a modern police patrol car is illustrated in U.S. Pat. No. 6,262,764 issued Jun. 17, 2001. It is common in police departments around the United States for computers and even printers to be included in patrol cars. For decades, various forms of radio communication between patrol cars and police stations have been available, and now computer systems within patrol cars can communicate directly with various back-office databases of assorted types for various purposes.
Additionally, identification cards carried by citizens have become more complex. They now contain machine-readable information in various forms and of assorted varieties along with an ordinary photograph and personal information related to the person carrying the identification. One example can be found in U.S. Pat. No. 6,224,109 issued May 1, 2001.
Nevertheless, with all of this advanced technology available to the police (and to commercial entities as well), it is typical that the receipt or official document given for a traffic citation (or even a ticket to get into a concert or get on an airplane for example) does not include readily identifiable biometric information such as a photograph, fingerprint or computer encoded and machine-readable biometric data which would self prove the document as against the individual when the individual uses the document for whatever purpose it was intended. In the case where the document is a traffic ticket, for example, it should be clear to the individual with his picture on it that there is very little opportunity for denying his presence at the scene where the ticket was issued Thus, the inclusion of a photograph and/or data taken from the individual's ID card at the scene can, if desired, substitute for a signature in a ticket-book.
Other applications to which the invention described within could enhance include border control persons screening persons coming into a nation, doctors and patient situations, aircraft and ship checking of personnel for ticketing and boarding, building entry control of building guards, delivery persons and the like. (For example a delivery person could obtain an image to augment a signature on official documents using the invention we describe in detail herein).
Therefore there is a strong need for portable biometric authentication systems and methods associated with documents and transactions that an invention of the type described herein can accommodate.